1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to clothes hanger transporting devices and particularly to hand held carriers for transporting multiple hangers loaded with clothing.
2. Description of the Related Art
Handling of clothing on hangers is often difficult, cumbersome and uncomfortable due to the hanger hooks gouging one's palms or cutting into one's fingers. This is particularly a problem when the hanger is holding a heavy garment or when a number of hangers are being hand carried at once. Also, there is the related problem of temporarily supporting the loaded carrier in an automobile while transporting the loaded carrier, or suspending a group of hangers in a closet, for example, while loading or unloading garments. These problems are encountered by people at the consumer level, as travelers with heavy garment bags, or car travelers with a bundle of hanging clothing, or in transporting clothing to and from the dry cleaners or laundromat, as well as by people engaged in commercial activities, as in transportation and delivery of clothing by dry cleaning establishments, or retail clothing stores' inventory movement.
Various devices are known for manually transporting garments on hangers. Some of these address the difficulty of comfortably carrying a number of hangers at once.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,824,156 (Greene) discloses a wire loop for engaging hanger hooks and aligning the hangers and comfortably carrying by means of a cylindrical hand grip.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,584,772 (Robertson) provides a hand held clothes hanger carrier having a flexible strap for engaging the hanger hooks and a handle adapted for suspending the carrier from an automobile clothes hook.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,306,063 (Higgins, et al.) discloses a carrier molded as a single piece and having slotted areas for engaging the clothes hanger hooks.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,799,416 (Schmaltz) discloses a "C" shaped molded hand held carrier having a handle adapted for being supported by a horizontal shelf.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,330,244 (Redwell) discloses a clothes hanger carrier adapted for hanging by a hook or being hand carried by its disk-like base. The base provides a space for advertising indicia.
Certain of the prior art devices are cumbersome to use because the hanger hook holder and the handling means are separate units. Carrying some of the prior art devices is inconvenient because the clothes hangers are not positioned parallel to the user's body. Other prior art devices are not adapted for temporarily suspending the loaded carrier on an auto hook or on a clothes rod, or are not comfortably and easily transferred to and from the interior car hook. Lack of shielding of the hanger hooks by some prior art carriers limits their desirability because the user's hands are unprotected. Some of the known carriers also have the problem of becoming entangled with the hangers while they are being loaded or unloaded. Some of the prior art devices are not sturdy or durable enough for repeated use. There is a need for a compact one-piece carrier that is comfortable to carry, easy to use and durable. A carrier that is suitable for use by persons having limited range of motion in the wrist or weakness in the hand or fingers is also wanted. Furthermore, there is a need for a clothes hanger carrier that can be attached to an automobile interior hook or to a clothes rod. It would also be desirable for such a carrier to lend itself to the display of advertising or other indicia.